Why are you passionately in love? Attachment styles as determinants of romantic passion and conflict resolution strategies

Abstract

Three studies explored the role of attachment styles as determinants of romantic passion and investigated how the interplay between these variables contributes to conflict resolution strategies within a romantic relationship. In Study 1, a secure attachment style was positively, and an avoidant attachment style negatively, associated with harmonious passion. Moreover, secure and anxious attachment styles were positively related to obsessive passion. In Study 2, we replicated and extended these findings by demonstrating that harmonious and obsessive passions positively predicted the use of adaptive and maladaptive conflict resolution strategies, respectively. In Study 3, results of Study 2 were replicated over time providing us with some information concerning the direction of the relationships among attachment, romantic passion, and conflict resolution strategies. Overall, the present results suggest that attachment styles are a determinant of romantic passion and that romantic passion mediates the relationships between attachment styles and the use of adaptive and maladaptive conflict resolution strategies.